A typical client-side computing device, such as a mobile computing and communications device, relies on various disparate entities for the servicing and management of the client device. For example, a user of the client device may need a desktop computer to access a billing website provided by a service provider for the client device. For data services, the user may have to access a website administered by an organization to which the client device is assigned. Still for other services, the user may have to access a website associated with a manufacturer of the client device.
Moreover, various interface points may have to be available to the user in order for the user to gain access to a full suite of services and management available for the client device. For example, certain services may be acquired via the client device. Other services may have to be acquired using a desktop website. Further still, other particular services may be available only via calls to a customer service representative. Moreover, certain updates for the client device may be obtained by accessing a website provided by a manufacturer of the client device.
As additional service-providing entities are introduced to a system for supporting operations and functionality of the client device, the complexity, at least from the user's perspective, increases commensurately and it accordingly becomes more difficult to fully service and manage the client device.
In addition, there are circumstances when a user replaces an old device (e.g., through an upgrade or replacement) with a new device. The new device may require a unique or different configuration, e.g., a PalmOS operating system, that is not fully compatible with the old device, e.g., a Windows Mobile operating system. In such circumstances, a user may desire to keep certain programs and configurations that correspond to the old device. However, it can be time consuming to these corresponding user configurations as compatibility aspects must be manually compared and tried. Further, it can be both time consuming and costly to locate, install, and configure user programs and applets on the new device that correspond to the old device. Thus, these are just some of the deficiencies of present day mobile computing devices.